My book review of 'Redhead by the Side of the Road' by Anne Tyler

by Anne Tyler

I loved this book!

Micah thinks he's got everything sorted. He runs every morning at 7.15, has a cleaning regime for the house he lives in alone, is in control of his business providing tech support in the neighbourhood, and he has a female friend.

But when his female friend wants to move the relationship to the next step (and Micah doesn't read the signs), and when he is visited by a strange teenager claiming to be his son, life steps up a different gear. How will Micah cope?

This is a gloriously comforting read. 

Micah is quietly sorrowful that he hasn't got a happy, committed relationship. He's not sure how he gets it wrong. He's resigned to the fact rather than full of angst, and it's just lovely when he decides that enough is enough and he will do something about resolving the situation.

Throughout, the narrative is interrupted by the comic episodes which face anyone/everyone in the service industry. Here, these are the tech problems with Micah, the computer expert regularly telling his anxious customers to 'turn it off and then on again'.

It's a beautiful book and, being slim, I think I'll read it again when I need to escape my world and step into Micah's!

Date of this review: April 2020
Book publication date: 7th April 2020